“You’re standing in a recording booth,” he said calmly. His voice slid through the speakers around me, deeper and rougher than before. “Seems like a waste not to make a little noise.”
My mouth fell open.
He couldn’t possibly be suggesting what I thought he was.
Nathan Edge had officially lost his mind.
I must have too… because part of me was actually considering it.
“Nathan,” I said, half laughing, half breathless. “We shouldn’t.”
Nathan’s smile only widened as he pushed away from the board. The chair rolled slightly as he stood, his gaze never leaving mine as he crossed the room and opened the booth door.
Suddenly the space felt much smaller.
Much warmer.
Nathan stepped inside and closed the door behind him, the soundproof seal shutting out the distant thump of music from the party. For a moment, the only sound in the room was our breathing.
Nathan looked down at me again, that same dangerous heat returning to his eyes. “Ready?” he murmured, brushing his thumb slowly along my lower lip. “We’re gonna make one hell of a track.”
My stomach flipped so hard I had to grip the edge of the console behind me.
Nathan’s mouth brushed mine again, urgent this time, hungrier. My fingers fisted in the front of his shirt before I even realized what I was doing.
Somewhere down the hall, the music swelled again.
But inside the studio, the world narrowed to nothing but Nathan and the warmth of his mouth against mine.
***
“LET’S GET OUTof here. I’m tired of sharing you with people.”
“Someone's clingy tonight,” I teased, but honestly I was ready to be alone with him too. “Let me go say bye to my friends first.”
I stepped out of the studio, my heart still racing from what had just happened. My skin was warm, and I could feel the flush on my cheeks. I paused, staring at the floor for a moment, trying to collect myself before meeting up with my friends.
“I would ask where have you been, but that just fucked glow answers my question.” Alessia said when I joined her, Kelsey, and Taylor.
“Have I told you how much I love how blunt you are?” I glared at her as Kelsey and Taylor giggled. “Do you think anyone else noticed we were gone?”
“I don’t think so. Everyone here has had one too many glasses of champagne.” Kelsey reassured me.
“Is everyone enjoying the party?” Nathan’s deep voice, calm and unexpected, sent shivers down my spine. I forced myself to act as normal as possible as he came over to me and my friends, trying to hide the way my heart skipped at his presence. I had known him for years, but the effect he had on me never seemed to fade.
“Some more than others,” Alessia answered, taking a sip of her champagne. I swear, if she wasn’t my friend, I’d make Nathan kick her out.
Nathan chuckled, unfazed by Alessia’s innuendo. I could tell he was getting used to it. His eyes flicked toward me then, and I could feel the weight of his gaze even before he spoke. “And you, Elise? Are you having a good time?”
The weight of his words charged the air around us and stirred a new ache between my thighs as I thought about our little tryst in the studio just a few minutes ago. “It’s a night I’ll never forget.”
He leaned closer, his gaze flickering to my lips for a brief, dangerous moment before he straightened up, his voice light but edged with something more. “Me either.”
“If you guys can barely keep it together for a few hours at a party, I wonder how you’ll survive with Elise away in Florida for a few days.” Kelsey said.
Home.
My family.
